FASHON FADES STYLE IS ETERNAL

Having just read the two terrific tomes we shared in our last post, Marella Agnelli: The Last Swan and Lou Lou De La Falaise, I was struck by how Agnelli and La Falaise never concerned themselves with trends. Whether decorating or dressing themselves there is always a sense of personal style. Certainly both wore couture and Agnelli worked with the most brilliant interior designers, architects, and landscape designers – but all was selected to enhance a singular and quite timeless vision. In fact, after looking through these books, I’m convinced that it would all look just as fabulous today as it would twenty years from now. As Yves Saint Laurent was fond of saying, “fashions fade, style is eternal.”

My own taste in fashion certainly has evolved over the years; as a young man it was all very ivy league, and then as I started to work with Ralph Lauren, I became possessed by his hyper romantic world. Having worked there for almost 10 years, my closet was overflowing. My departure from Ralph Lauren left me at a stylistic crossroads. The cherished wardrobe I had acquired at Lauren started to feel a bit like a costume, and wasn’t very sexy. Tom Ford at Gucci came to the rescue, though I quickly realized that the mod 60’s vibe of some of his stuff would quickly become outdated. Thankfully Ford’s transition to a Savile Row inspired classical style coincided with my shift in aesthetic, which I added a touch of Italian flair to. I have continued to experiment over the years, and yes, made some hideous choices along the way, but that is always a chance one takes when trying to push the envelope a bit.

I really love the fact that La Falaise had such an elevated sense of style that she could wear YSL couture and still put her own brilliant twist on things — there was a spectacular creative reciprocity between muse and the master Saint Laurent himself — great stye informing great fashion. In this spirit, we here at WIJW hope you are courageously expressing your own sense of personal style while navigating the ever-changing fashions of the day!

4 Comments

What a great portrait of you and love your take on the books and the swan, and the muse, you seem to have made a connection with them-

I am mad for that lilac and aqua combo!

Loved your self-deprecating comments! (Last night, I went to a chic dinner where the hostess had previously had a NY apartment, loves chinoiserie, and had worked with the decorator Clare Fraser- and I had the confidence to wear, thanks to you, white jeans, an Ike Behar shirting in a pink basket weave woven, Vineyard Vines multi color d ring belt, and Stubbs Wooton slippers in black velveteen…my hair was big and blonde, and my fragrance was Jo Malone Amber Lavender! Inspired! By you, Marella, and Lou Lou…!)

“…ALWAYS ONE STEP AHEAD OF THE CURVE…JAMES ANDREW: INTERIOR DESIGNER, STYLE ICON AND BLOGGER EXTRAORDINAIRE IS THE LATEST ARBITER OF STYLE.”

“THE LATEST … ARBITER OF GOOD TASTE ….”

“JAMES ANDREW IS THE ULTIMATE DANDY”… “GATSBY-MEETS-GUCCI STYLE…”

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